McBride shows her class, grace, voice

Published 7:42 pm, Saturday, December 15, 2012

Martina McBride performs at the ALMA Awards on Sunday, Sept. 16, 2012, in Pasadena, Calif. (Photo by John Shearer/Invision/AP)

Martina McBride performs at the ALMA Awards on Sunday, Sept. 16, 2012, in Pasadena, Calif. (Photo by John Shearer/Invision/AP)

Photo: John Shearer

McBride shows her class, grace, voice

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ALBANY — Ten minutes before the start of her Christmas concert at the Palace Theatre on Friday evening, Martina McBride quietly walked out on stage unannounced, stood all by herself at center stage and told the audience, "We're all shocked and heartbroken about what happened in Connecticut today." Then she led the crowd in a moment of silence "for the children and everyone across the country whose hearts are breaking."

It might seem nearly impossible to pull off a show about the goodness of mankind and the joy of the holiday season in the face of such unspeakable tragedy, but McBride did just that — with class, grace and a simply magnificent voice.

Backed by a dozen musicians (a four-piece band, a string quartet and four backing vocalists), McBride covered all the bases — all of the often conflicting emotions of the season — during her splendid two-hour show. She began with the traditional pop songs of the season – opening with "Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!" and following up with such nuggets as "The Christmas Song (Chestnuts Roasting On an Open Fire)," the gently swinging "Winter Wonderland" (during which seven utterly adorable young dancers from the Isabelle School of Dance in East Greenbush handily stole the spotlight), "Silver Bells," "White Christmas" and more.

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Concert review

Martina McBride's "The Joy of Christmas"

When: 7:30 p.m. Friday

Where: The Palace Theatre, Albany

Length: Just over two hours, including a 20-minute intermission

Highlights: "The Christmas Song (Chestnuts Roasting On an Open Fire)," "Anyway" and "O Holy Night"

The crowd: A multigenerational audience clearly in the holiday spirit

She utilized the big video screen backdrop to showcase messages from "our men and women in the armed forces and their families," many of whom gave shout-outs to their loved ones throughout the Capital Region. Then, sporting the third of her seven different costumes of the night, she ventured out into the audience to chat.

"This is either gonna be like Oprah or like Jerry Springer," she declared, the voice of experience. It was all Oprah, heartwarming and humorous, concluding with a fan who simply declared, "You're a real class act ... " He was right.

She wrapped up the first set with a handful of her non-holiday hits ("Anyway," "I'm Gonna Love You Through It," "Blessed" and "This One's for the Girls"), but they were all open-hearted, empowering anthems that aligned with the spirit of the season.

She kicked off the second half of her show in a rockin' mode (highlighted by the flat-out Chuck Berry boogie of "Run, Run Rudolph" and the slow blues grind of "Please Come Home for Christmas") before offering a duet-via-video with Elvis Presley on "Blue Christmas." WGNA-FM morning DJ Richie Phillips stepped into the spotlight to recite Dr. Seuss' "How the Grinch Stole Christmas" as McBride sang "You're a Mean One, Mr. Grinch."

And she concluded her multifaceted holiday concert with a turn toward the traditional religious repertoire — "O Come All Ye Faithful," "Silent Night," What Child Is This" and a towering a cappella rendition of "O Holy Night." If you didn't walk into the Palace feeling the Christmas vibe, you undoubtedly walked out at the end of the night brimming over with the holiday spirit.